Could The ARIAs Head To Queensland?

Queensland certainly has been on the march of late, creating anger in Victoria by poaching the Logies in 2018 (which subsequently calmed down when TV types realised a tax-deductable weekend on the Gold Coast isn't a terrible thing) to add to the Asia Pacific Screen Awards. Website TV Tonight reported yesterday that an announcement on Saturday by the AACTAs, the Queensland Government and Major Events Gold Coast is likely to signal the event moving across the border, creating a clean sweep of major film and TV awards nights for the Sunshine State.

The Gold Coast Bulletin reported in 2018 that the real reason behind the high-profile poaching of the Logies was the Palaszczuk government's strategy to lure creative production to stimulate the industry and create a local hub for creative jobs. With the AACTAs, the puzzle continues to take shape, with one piece missing - music. 

The Queensland government has already signalled their support for music with the long-term building of BIGSOUND, until now the Southern Hemisphere's biggest new music event, although that is currently being threatened by New South Wales' shot across the bow, securing the South By Southwest conference. The offshoot of the Austin-based event is aiming to steal BIGSOUND's supremacy with a reportedly eye-watering long-term investment from the state. BIGSOUND has previously seen off well-funded challengers including the WA-government-backed One Movement, so time will tell whether the two events can co-exist, whether BIGSOUND muscles up to the challenger or whether Queensland's historical role in the breaking of new music may well be under threat. 

Quietly and confidently though, while the battle of the conferences has played out in government board rooms, Queensland has been getting about its business, building strong and local music infrastructure. The pandemic saw a huge jump in small music industry businesses moving to Queensland including managers, labels and more, while the country's biggest music studio complex and production hub, 4000 Studios opened in Fortitude Valley, luring producers including the internationally renowned Konstantin Kersting (Tones & I, Spacey Jane, Amy Shark) and around a dozen of the country's best new production wizards to set up shop in the rapidly growing capital. 

Even the site you're reading this article on was part of the exodus, with new owners (us!) bringing TheMusic.com.au, Purple Sneakers, Kill Your Stereo and Countrytown to Fortitude Valley. Key trade title The Music Network was also lured to the sunshine (although was recently acquired by Sydney's The Brag but retains two key Queensland staff), joining national print mag Scenestr and the Gold Coast's Blank Magazine to create a re-invigorated music media scene. Brisbane is now also the home to Australia's first new vinyl pressing plant Suitcase Records and global distribution startup Gyrostream, completing an ecosystem of music commerce befitting a serious music city.

Brisbane also sees the opening of the major entertainment precinct around the new casino and a major new theatre at the Queensland Performing Arts Complex coming online over the next couple of years and, of course, the elephant in the room is the Olympics with the Queensland government seemingly committed to having its ducks in a row to ensure that the state is at the head of the cultural table when the world is looking in 2032. 

The Queensland Music Awards has also seen rapid growth, becoming the biggest state-based music awards show in the country, but securing the ARIAs would be the jewel in the crown for the state which, whether by design or luck, has managed to be sitting in the box seat to become the Nashville to Sydney and Melbourne's New York and LA. 

It's no secret that the ARIAs is in need of a re-set. In recent years TV numbers for all award shows globally have been a challenge and the balance between putting something people want to watch on screen with something that builds community and feels great in the room is a job for either the brave or the foolish. A change of scene and some new approaches might be just what the event needs. The ARIAs represent thirty-six years of history and is still an aspiration for Australian artists. An ARIA nomination is like a rite of passage after a BIGSOUND showcase, their first play on triple j or hosting Rage. That's a heritage Queensland would love to bring north of the border.

With Destination New South Wales keeping their eye on the ball with South By Southwest, will Queensland take the opportunity to strike? Clearly, their plan to hoover up awards nights isn't over just yet and the ARIAs could be a key positioner on the way to the Olympics. You hear a lot of scuttlebutt in this business, but perhaps some AACTAs smoke could be an indication of an ARIAs fire.